The Latest: Trump: 'Disgraceful verdict' in pier shooting

Alex Bastian, Deputy Chief of Staff with the San Francisco District Attorney's Office answers questions after a verdict was reached in the trial of Jose Ines Garcia Zarate Thursday, Nov. 30, 2017, in San Francisco. Garcia Zarate was found not guilty in the killing of Kate Steinle on a San Francisco pier that touched off a national immigration debate two years ago, rejecting possible charges ranging from involuntary manslaughter to first-degree murder. (AP Photo/Marcio Jose Sanchez)

November 30, 2017 - 7:48 PM

SAN FRANCISCO - The Latest on the trial of a Mexican man in a killing on a San Francisco pier (all times local):

7:45 p.m.

President Donald Trump says there was a "disgraceful verdict" after a Mexican man was found not guilty of murder in a high-profile killing that touched off a fierce immigration debate.

Trump's tweet comes three hours after Jose Ines Garcia Zarate was found not guilty in the killing of Kate Steinle. Jurors did convict him of being a felon in possession of a firearm.

Trump says it is "no wonder the people of our Country are so angry with Illegal Immigration."

Jose Ines Garcia Zarate had been deported five times and was wanted for a sixth deportation when the shooting happened. He said it was an accident.

Under a sanctuary city law, the San Francisco sheriff's department had released Garcia Zarate from jail despite a federal immigration request to detain him for deportation

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7:20 p.m.

U.S. immigration officials say they will deport a Mexican man acquitted of murder in the shooting of woman on a San Francisco pier that touched off a fierce debate over immigration.

Acting U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement Director Thomas Homan said Thursday that immigration officials will take custody of Jose Ines Garcia Zarate once his case concludes.

A jury found Garcia Zarate not guilty in the 2015 death of Kate Steinle. Jurors did convict him of being a felon in possession of a firearm.

Garcia Zarate had been deported five times and was wanted for a sixth deportation when the shooting happened. He said it was an accident.

Under a sanctuary city law, the San Francisco sheriff's department had released Garcia Zarate from jail despite a federal immigration request to detain him for deportation

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6:20 p.m.

The father of a woman who was shot and killed on a San Francisco pier said he was shocked when a jury acquitted a Mexican immigrant accused of murder in the case.

Jim Steinle told the San Francisco Chronicle the family was saddened and shocked by Thursday's verdict.

He said, "justice was rendered but not served."

A jury found Jose Ines Garcia Zarate not guilty in the killing of Kate Steinle, who was strolling with her father on a crowded San Francisco pier when she was shot in 2015.

Garcia Zarate did not deny shooting Steinle and said it was an accident.

The Steinle family did not attend court to hear the verdict.

They spoke to the Chronicle in an exclusive interview that they said would be their last public comments.

Her father said the family has felt frustration and sadness but not anger or vindictiveness since the killing.

Even if Garcia Zarate had received a sentence of 100 years, the father said, "it doesn't solve anything, it doesn't help anything."

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5:45 p.m.

U.S. Attorney General Jeff Sessions says he hopes local officials will "consider carefully the harm they are doing to their citizens" by not co-operating with federal immigration officials.

His comments come after a Mexican man was found not guilty Thursday of killing a woman on a San Francisco pier in a case that touched off a national immigration debate.

Sessions says San Francisco's "decision to protect criminal aliens led to the preventable and heartbreaking death" of Kate Steinle.

Jose Ines Garcia Zarate had been deported five times and was wanted for a sixth deportation when Kate Steinle was fatally shot in the back in 2015. Garcia Zarate said the shooting was an accident.

Under a sanctuary city law, the San Francisco sheriff's department had released Garcia Zarate from jail despite a federal immigration request to detain him for deportation

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5:30 p.m.

A spokesman for the San Francisco district attorney says the acquittal of a Mexican man in a high-profile killing was not the verdict they had hoped for.

A jury on Thursday found Jose Ines Garcia Zarate not guilty on possible charges of first-degree murder, second-degree murder and involuntary manslaughter in the death of Kate Steinle on a popular pier.

Alex Bastian, a spokesman for the San Francisco prosecutor's office, said the "verdict that came in today was not the one we were hoping for" but it was the jury's decision and prosecutors would respect it.

Jurors did find Garcia Zarate guilty of being a felon in possession of a firearm.

Public Defender Jeff Adachi said that charge carries a potential sentence of 16 months to 3 years.

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5:10 p.m.

A defence lawyer for a Mexican man acquitted of murder in the shooting of woman in San Francisco directed a message to President Donald Trump, who had frequently cited the case during his campaign for tougher immigration policies.

Defence attorney Francisco Ugarte said Thursday the death of Kate Steinle was an "incomprehensible tragedy," but the ruling was a vindication for immigrants.

Ugarte said the case was used "to foment hate" and used "to catapult a presidency along that philosophy of hate of others."

He said the immigration status of defendant Jose Ines Garcia Zarate had no relevance to the case and the verdict was a correct reflection of what transpired.

Garcia Zarate did not deny shooting Steinle in 2015 and said it was an accident.

He had been deported five times and was wanted for a sixth deportation when Steinle was fatally shot in the back in 2015.

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4:35 p.m.

Jurors have found a Mexican man not guilty of murder in the killing of a woman on a San Francisco pier in a case that touched off a national immigration debate.

The jury reached the verdict Thursday in Kate Steinle's death.

Jose Ines Garcia Zarate had been deported five times and was wanted for a sixth deportation when Steinle was fatally shot in the back in 2015. Garcia Zarate didn't deny shooting Steinle and said it was an accident.

Before the shooting, the San Francisco sheriff's department had released him from jail despite a federal immigration request to detain him for deportation.

Its "sanctuary city" law limits co-operation with U.S. immigration authorities.

President Donald Trump cited the case during his campaign in a bid to show the country needed tougher immigration policies.

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3:30 p.m.

A jury has reached a verdict in the trial of a Mexican man accused of killing a woman on a San Francisco pier in a case that touched off a national immigration debate.

Jurors alerted the judge Thursday that they had a verdict in the death of Kate Steinle. Word came hours after they asked to see the gun used in the shooting.

Jose Ines Garcia Zarate had been deported five times and was wanted for a sixth deportation when Steinle was fatally shot in the back in 2015. Garcia Zarate said the shooting was an accident.

Under a sanctuary city law, the San Francisco sheriff's department had released Garcia Zarate from jail despite a federal immigration request to detain him for deportation.

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